Filed under: Crossover, Ford, First Drives
Don't Call It A Comeback
In the music industry, a band's third album is typically make-or-break. You start with the debut album, introducing the general public to the band's polished works, then comes the sophomore record, which proves whether or not the band can keep its fan base happy and gain more traction in the music scene. But the third album must show if that band's sound and style has a good enough mix of individual flare and mainstream appeal to keep them successful in the long-run.
If you think about it, the same can be said about the automotive landscape, and for the purpose of this review, the Ford Escape. The first-generation Escape, launched in 2000 as a 2001 model, entered during a time when small SUVs and "cute-utes" were booming. The redesigned 2008 Escape built upon the first model's success, and now, as the curtain is about to close on that ruggedly handsome, boxy Escape, this new third-generation model has some mighty big shoes to fill.
Over the past year, the Escape has been an absolute sales superstar. In 2011, Ford moved over 254,000 of the compact crossovers - a 33-percent gain over 2010's numbers. To get an idea of just how impressive that is, know that in the same timeframe, Honda moved just over 218,000 CR-Vs, while Toyota sold 137,000 RAV4s and Chevrolet hustled around 193,000 Equinox models. Building upon that success, Ford announced that with 60,000 units sold in the first quarter of 2012, the Escape posted its best Q1 numbers in its 11-year history. Talk about going out with a bang.
But rather than sticking to the original formula of a small, trucky crossover, Ford has completely redesigned the Escape for 2013. Perhaps the biggest point of contention surrounding the new model is its styling - the two-box, upright design has been ditched in favor of the automaker's Kinetic language, employing a more, shall we say, Focused appearance.
So here it is, the ever-important third album. Does Ford's all-new Escape have enough mainstream appeal to take on the best and brightest of the CUV set while still being able to appeal to loyalists? We headed to the roads around San Francisco to find out.
If you think about it, the same can be said about the automotive landscape, and for the purpose of this review, the Ford Escape. The first-generation Escape, launched in 2000 as a 2001 model, entered during a time when small SUVs and "cute-utes" were booming. The redesigned 2008 Escape built upon the first model's success, and now, as the curtain is about to close on that ruggedly handsome, boxy Escape, this new third-generation model has some mighty big shoes to fill.
Over the past year, the Escape has been an absolute sales superstar. In 2011, Ford moved over 254,000 of the compact crossovers - a 33-percent gain over 2010's numbers. To get an idea of just how impressive that is, know that in the same timeframe, Honda moved just over 218,000 CR-Vs, while Toyota sold 137,000 RAV4s and Chevrolet hustled around 193,000 Equinox models. Building upon that success, Ford announced that with 60,000 units sold in the first quarter of 2012, the Escape posted its best Q1 numbers in its 11-year history. Talk about going out with a bang.
But rather than sticking to the original formula of a small, trucky crossover, Ford has completely redesigned the Escape for 2013. Perhaps the biggest point of contention surrounding the new model is its styling - the two-box, upright design has been ditched in favor of the automaker's Kinetic language, employing a more, shall we say, Focused appearance.
So here it is, the ever-important third album. Does Ford's all-new Escape have enough mainstream appeal to take on the best and brightest of the CUV set while still being able to appeal to loyalists? We headed to the roads around San Francisco to find out.
Continue reading 2013 Ford Escape [w/video]
2013 Ford Escape [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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